Music and Running- Part 2 (My headphones/ear-buds review)

By now we have firmly established my addiction to music. Especially while running. Now let us review the associated gadgetry.

It all started about eleven years ago (Oh please! I am not THAT old….I was still a teenager then!)….

I wanted to go “jogging” in the mornings. I had run middle distance (400m and 800m) for my school…. So I knew I could run….

But running seemed boring…and downright “uncool” if you did not have something stuck to your ear.

So I started my running journey while being strapped on to something like these….

They were sometimes more trouble than they were worth…

But at least they kept boredom at bay. They also made you deaf to the daft and pestiferous comments and taunts from the pre-pubescent Bangalore boys who haunted the parks ….

Then the mp3 explosion happened. I was overjoyed. I hated lugging that huge thing on my waistband. I begged and cajoled my Dad into getting me my first mp3 player.

My first mp3 running buddy was a Creative MuVo (I think that was what it was called) 256Mb. It was love at first sight. I slung it round my neck and ran hard. I kid you not,- my runs definitely got longer, thanks to the MuVo.

Petite and nifty, just like me- it was a breeze to transfer songs onto it. And at that time 256Mb seemed like an infinite amount of memory.

I used it along with some random, generic pair of headphones for a long time. Years in fact. In the sun and rain, the MuVo stuck with me. At the fag end of it’s life, I upgraded to some decent (for then!) headphones. A Creative one. Nothing fancy, but way better than any I had used thus far.

The love affair lasted a long time. Until one day when…

The MuVo died a sudden death!

I finished my run one day, wiped off the sweat like usual and put it to charge. The next morning, he did not play. Not a sound. Nothing on the display either. I cried. And cancelled my run to honour his memory.

May his soul rest in peace.

By then, my Dad had already bought an iPod Nano. He is a music lover as well you see. He wanted something small and handy. But when he saw how distraught I was over the death of my trusted MuVo, he bequeathed the Nano to me. One morning, I woke up and found them on my bed.

I cried again! This time with tears of joy.

The Nano was great, and served me well for several years. The only problem was that it’s snap-on soft-case kept tearing. My sweat was corrosive to it apparently. I ended up buying a new one almost every month.

Finally, about 3 years ago I bought the 4th generation iPod shuffle. It was a random, impulse purchase. And one of the best such purchases. It’s self-clipping and miniscule. It’s perfect.

Some may argue that not having a display is an issue. For me, it makes no difference. No display means it’s smaller. The smaller, the better.

I don’t really need a display anyway. I don’t want to be fiddling with my iPod while I run. The whole purpose of using one (to make the run less boring) is defeated if one ends up searching for songs instead on concentrating on the run itself.

The sound quality is not out of this world, or anything spectacular. I don’t need it to be. Enjoying the intricacies of a particular piece of music- I can do it at a different time and under better circumstances. Not when I am huffing and puffing and when the blood seems to be pounding in my head. In fact, the iPod nano (I own the 2nd generation) has far superior sound quality.

The Nano still functions marvellously and I do use it occasionally (when my jacket or tracks have pockets!). I have quit buying the cases.though….

But for the most part, it is the shuffle that I reach for.

That is how I settled into my current music source – The humble 4th Generation iPod Shuffle …

Now, coming to the headphone journey.

Well, I don’t really have a story here. I used a very basic set for the longest time. Only last year did that change.

Last year, Mr H did something rare and utterly surprising. He’s not the romantic, let’s buy roses and flowers and gifts for my dear wife types.

Yet, one day….

He nonchalantly, almost sheepishly gave me a package.It wasn’t my birthday, or our anniversary or any another “occasion”….

I had often seen him examining my battered, old creative headset though…

This is the box he handed to me.Just like that. For no rhyme or reason. With absolutely no associated hoopla….

Mr H! You sneaky romantic!

Wow!!!

Needless to say, my runs have never been the same since…

They are insanely priced and I’m sure the sound quality does not merit the price….

But…

Who cares!!!

I don’t have to keep tugging at my ear. Or constantly put back hesistant-to-stay-on earbuds, or constantly adjust bulky headsets…

Or worry about my sweat eating through the wires!

I fit them before I put on my shoes….and they stay on ….Till the sweat has dried…Till I reach home…Till I remove them…

They are water- proof. Sweat- proof. And they better be, or they won’t last long on me!

They make my shuffle sound great…

And most importantly, they have taught me what good quality headphones/ ear-buds can do to your running….